(erielack) Rockaway Loop Project approved

["Taylor, Seth \(Seth\)" <"staylor_@_lucent.com">]

It's official. NJDOT as part of a realignment of US route 46 and St Hwy 15
intersection in Dover (NJ), will award a contract for the work in 2001.
Design work has started. There has been  an agreement between local
government officials and all land owners for final the version of the
project. The planned completion date is 2003. Part of the work requires
ripping up the former CNJ Dover-Rockaway line through the Town of Dover
(owned by Morris County) and eliminating 15 grade crossings in the town
(Daily Record May 26 page A-13).
The CNJ tracks will be removed in Dover and the r-o-w will remain owned by
the County and is slated to become a river walk trail along the Rockaway
River. The important part of the project is that Rockaway Township portion
of former CNJ branch from Mc Williams Forge to Green Pond Road  will be
connected to a partially restored Lackawanna Rockaway Loop so that M&E RR
can service industrial customers in Rockaway Township. The Loop (abandoned
in the early 50's) will be reconnected to the Lackawanna (NJ Transit) track
#1 around MP37. That part of the "Loop" that will be rebuilt is currently a
GPU Energy R-O-W for a 32 KV transmission line which will have to be moved
to one side. 
Power & Light put the line down the middle of the r-o-w in the 50's never
thinking it would be used as a railroad again (Hah!). Funds to do the work
will come from the overall construction money allocated for the highway
work. By doing this, the DOT will actually be saving money by not having to
meet new bridge height requirements at the Rt 46/Rt15 intersection over the
old CNJ line (which can now be removed). It's nice to see stuff going back
in after 50 years.

It's time to plan a last ride on the CNJ in Dover and "hello" Rockaway Loop"
trip when both will be available at the same time (maybe sometime in 2002)
before they rip out the tracks in Dover.

Seth T.  

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